‘Predator: Killer of Killers’ receives 7.5 out of 10 stars.
On Hulu on June 6th is ‘Predator: Killer of Killers,’ an animated anthology that has Predator creatures dropping in on three very different time periods of Earth.
Directed by Dan Trachtenberg (‘Prey’), it features the voices of Rick Gonzalez, Damien Haas, Doug Cockle, Michael Biehn and Louis Ozawa.
Related Article: ‘Prey’ Director Dan Trachtenberg Shot A Second New ‘Predator’ Pic Before ‘Badlands’
Initial Thoughts
Dan Trachtenberg certainly brought a breath of fresh air to the ‘Predator’ franchise after even Shane Black couldn’t manage to breathe new life into it with the disappointing ‘The Predator.’ So Trachtenberg has naturally been given free rein to explore other avenues, and he’s been on a cherry picking mission through the wider Predator mythology (which includes comic books, novelizations and video games) to find different looks for the Yautja aliens –– the Predators’ actual species name –– and different human challenges for them to face.
Yet as with any attempt to build on an existing franchise, does ‘Killer of Killers’ establish itself as worthy?
Script and Direction
Trachtenberg worked up the story for the new movie alongside Micho Robert Rutare, with the latter tasked into turning their concepts into a screenplay. The result, as with any anthology is a mixed bag, with one of the stories standing out from the others; though all have something to recommend them.
The first, ‘The Shield,’ takes place in Viking times (841 A.D. if you really want to get specific), and sees a Predator incursion interrupting a clash between clan leader Ursa and Zoran, the war chief who murdered her father. A little like ‘Prey,’ it follows a rite of passage, as Ursa’s son Anders is being encouraged to fight like a warrior. Suffice to say, there are plenty of hacked limbs and slashed midriffs –– and that’s before the Predator creature even shows up.
‘The Shield’ manages some good moments undercutting expectations, though it is also relatively slight.
‘The Sword’ brings us forward in time to Samurai-era Japan, where a ninja has turned against the Samurai brother he was raised opposite. This time, the story of vengeance is slightly more nuanced, and the Predator who arrives to add to the chaos nimbler than the previous example.
Finally, ‘The Bullet,’ the third story, is set during World War II and features something truly new and different –– at least in big-screen ‘Predator’ action –– while it is the story of young mechanic (and wannabe pilot) Torres, it’s mostly set in the air, as American fighter planes take on a Predator spaceship.
It won’t surprise you to learn, particularly given Trachtenberg’s involvement, that there is also more going on here –– but spoiler concerns prevent us from talking more about that element. Suffice to say, there are connections here that slowly reveal themselves, and deepen the story.
On the animation front, Josh Wassung’s team acquit themselves admirably, creating subtly different styles for each time period, but finding a way to have them feel of a piece. While occasional moments can look like a video game cutscene, and the jerky animation can take a little getting used to, the overall effect works.
And, as mentioned, setting these stories in an animated world gives plenty of scope for bigger action set pieces and wilder moments.
Cast and Performances
Barring one or two recognizable names (Michael Biehn, Rick Gonzalez, Lauren Holt, Louis Ozawa and Doug Cockle), the voice cast here is mostly made up of people who will be familiar to die-hard gamers and animation fans.
Still, there are effective performances here –– Gonzalez gets a chance to shine as Torres, the young mechanic with some serious piloting chops in the World War II entry, while Lindsay LaVanchy does good work as Ursa, the Viking warrior aiming to forge the next generation of fighter while burning with vengeful fury.
Though the script and, by nature the anthology format, doesn’t always give the cast the most rounded of characters to play, they all work well.
Final Thoughts
Some ‘Predator’ fanatics might quibble with a few details here and there, and the quality of the stories can be mixed, but ‘Killer of Killers’ proves to be a welcome addition to the franchise, providing some visuals that would be prohibitively expensive in live-action and leaning into the mythology.
A few lingering story tendrils push it into Marvel territory in terms of wondering if this is all place-setting for Trachtenberg’s upcoming live-action ‘Predator: Badlands,’ but again, to even speculate about that is verging on spoiler territory.
And regardless, ‘Killer of Killers’ manages to tell a mostly contained, solid story with some welcome, clever nods to the ‘Predator’ movies of the past.
S7LR3mAoZGXN2AXGR4nOdWhat’s the story of ‘Predator: Killer of Killers’?
The anthology story follows three of the fiercest warriors in human history: a Viking raider guiding her young son on a bloody quest for revenge, a ninja in feudal Japan who turns against his Samurai brother in a brutal battle for succession, and a WWII pilot who takes to the sky to investigate an otherworldly threat to the Allied cause.
But while all these warriors are killers in their own right, they are merely prey for their new opponent –– the ultimate killer of killers.
Who is in the cast of ‘Predator: Killer of Killers’?
- Lindsay LaVanchy as Ursa
- Louis Ozawa as Kenji/Kiyoshi
- Rick Gonzalez as Torres
- Michael Biehn as Vandy
- Doug Cockle as Einar
- Damien Hass as Anders
- Andrew Morgado as Chief Zoran
- Britton Watkins as Warlord Predator
List of Movies in the ‘Predator’ Franchise:
- ‘Predator‘ (1987)
- ‘Predator 2‘ (1990)
- ‘AVP: Alien vs. Predator‘ (2004)
- ‘Aliens vs Predator: Requiem‘ (2007)
- ‘Predators‘ (2010)
- ‘The Predator‘ (2018)
- ‘Prey‘ (2022)
- ‘Predator: Killer of Killers’ (2025)
- ‘Predator: Badlands’ (2025)
